July 2, 2010 - Mayoral candidate and former state Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata and other backers of a $1-per-pack tobacco tax to fund cancer research said they submitted more than enough petition signatures Wednesday, June 30th to put their measure on the ballot in 2012.

Perata, said the California Cancer Research Act's supporters hope the high voter turnout of a presidential election year will help the measure, even as it's attacked by the tobacco industry and anti-tax groups. "We're going to be in a big fight," he acknowledged. "In that sense, getting the signatures was really the easy part."Money raised would go into a trust fund, with 60 cents of every dollar to fund research on causes, prevention and treatment of cancer and other smoking-related illnesses; 20 cents to fund smoking cessation and tobacco use prevention programs; 15 cents to fund research facilities and equipment; 3 cents to fund anti-tobacco and anti-smuggling enforcement; and no more than 2 cents per dollar for administrative costs.

Perata estimated the tax will raise about $855 million per year at first, although that figure will decline as smoking wanes.

Backing the measure are the American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, American Lung Association and the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Perata said LIVESTRONG, cyclist Lance Armstrong's anti-cancer foundation, formally endorsedthe measure Tuesday.

Jane Warner, chief executive of the American Lung Association in California, said the measure makes good fiscal sense, as tobacco costs the state $15.8 billion in health-care costs and lost productivity every year.

July 2, 2010 - More measures have been put in place to protect non-smokers from tobacco-related health hazards at workplaces and in public areas.

Smoking is now prohibited at health-related venues, primary and secondary schools, public transport outlets and religious centres. Smoking will be allowed at government offices, universities, petrol stations and international airports, but Public Health Minister Jurin Laksanavisit said smoking areas must be located outside. (Thailand - number of no-smoking zones expanded..)

Thailand has about 13 million smokers - about one-fifth of the population. "We believe that non-smoking Thais will be protected from second-hand smoke [after the ban is enforced]," Mr Jurin said.All public places are required to carry signs with the message "smoke-free area".

Smokers violating the ban and proprietors who do not put up warning signs could face a fine of up to 2,000 baht (61.75 USD). Those who do not provide smoking areas as required by the public health announcement could face a fine of up to 20,000 baht (617.485 USD), he said.

Operators of public places will have 180 days to prepare smoking areas in compliance with the legislation, said Churit Tengtrisorn, director of the Public Health Ministry's Office of Tobacco Control Committee. Hotlines at 1422 and 1555 will provide details of the new public health announcement, he said.

Public Health Ministry figures show tobacco kills 1.2 million people in Asia and 5.4 millions worldwide every year - more than HIV/Aids, malaria and tuberculosis combined.

The figures show up to half of all smokers will die of a tobacco-related disease such as lung or mouth cancer, stroke, or heart or lung disease. Second-hand smoke also harms those who are exposed to it, the ministry said.

Thailand has long been considered as exercising some of the toughest tobacco controls in the world. The country banned smoking inside cinemas and on public buses in 1976 and the number of areas where smoking is banned has increased steadily.

Graphic warnings on tobacco packages are among the mandatory measures.

Laws to prevent the advertising of cigarettes at shops and in the media have existed for more than a decade.

Click to enlarge either image.. July 2, 2010 - The Fourth District Court of Appeal ruled yesterday, June 29th that an advertisement depicting flying radios with helicopter rotors, jet-propelled tractors and televisions growing from the ground on plant stalks violated a 1998 settlement barring the use of cartoons in cigarette advertising.

4th District Court, Division One said R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company violated the settlement when it ran the four-page advertisement in Rolling Stone Magazine in 2007 to promote the company’s “Camel Farm” campaign to sell cigarettes to fans of rock musicians on independent record labels.

Background: Attorneys general from 8 states have filed a motion against R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. (RJR) alleging that RJR is illegally marketing cigarettes to youth through a current advertising campaign violating the 1998 Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (MSA). That agreement, which the tobacco industry signed to end the national tobacco litigation, expressly prohibits the use of cartoons to advertise or promote cigarettes.

At least eight states – Maine, Ohio, California, Illinois, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Washington – sued the Winston-Salem, N.C.-based company after the fold-out advertisement appeared in one of (November 15, 2007) Rolling Stone’s special 40th anniversary issues.

Reynolds and the nation’s other largest tobacco companies entered into the [master] settlement agreement with 46 states and the District of Columbia to resolve claims against the companies relating to public health and the marketing of tobacco products to minors.

California Attorney General Jerry Brown, along with other states’ attorneys general, filed suit after the ad ran in Rolling Stone, arguing that it violated the settlement. Prager agreed, although he rejected the contention that Reynolds was responsible for placing the ad so that it bookended five pages of editorial content accompanied by hand-drawn illustrations.

Reynolds appealed, but Presiding Justice Judith McConnell rebuffed the company’s argument that the settlement’s definition of “cartoon” was ambiguous. McConnell, however, wrote that adopting Reynolds’ interpretation would defeat the purpose of including the term “object” insofar as no object can demonstrate the human attributes such as “courage and principle” denoted by the word “hero.”

Opining that Prager’s determination that the ad was a cartoon was correct, she also pointed to an opinion by a Washington court involving similar litigation, State of Washington v. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. (Wash.App. 2009) 211 P.3d 448, quoting:

“[I]t is plain that one focus of the [settlement] is to prohibit the marketing of tobacco products by the use of unnatural images. The Camel Farm imagery depends entirely upon suspension of the laws of nature. Under a blue sky in a pastoral Eden, roosters hitch rides on floating tractors, speakers grow out of the ground, and radios fly. This is in a world where the natural laws do not obtain, where cancer and serious health problems can cease to exist. For a product known to cause both, such a world is a potent sales device.”

In a separate portion of the opinion, McConnell also rejected Reynolds’ claim that Prager committed reversible error in concluding that he had discretion under the settlement to assess monetary sanctions against the company for using cartoons. Pointing out that Prager opted not to impose such sanctions, she said the issue was moot.

Justices Richard D. Huffman and James A. McIntyre joined McConnell in her opinion. The case is In re Tobacco Cases I, 10 S.O.S. 3563.

July 1, 2010 - Egyptian smokers saw prices surge Thursday, July 1st by as much as 100 percent as the government slapped new taxes on tobacco products in a bid to curb smoking and raise money for public health programs in the Arab world's most populous nation.

As part of a new law passed in May but only being implemented now, the taxes raise the price of cigarettes by as much as 40 percent, while the tobacco used in Egypt's ubquitous water pipes, known locally as shisha, now costs twice as much.

The law is part of government efforts to curb smoking, which many Egyptians maintain is one of the few remaining affordable pleasures in a country where rising prices have sparked protests over the past few months.Government officials say that the move is needed to help convince Egypt's millions of smokers to kick their habit. World Health Organization figures show the number of smokers in the country has grown over twice as fast as the population over the past 30 years. WHO figures show that around 40 percent of men in Egypt over the age of 15 use some form of tobacco, while 82 per cent of daily cigarette smokers consume between 16 and 20 cigarettes per day.

"Some people will be angry for some time, but I think it will decrease the consumption of tobacco," said Sahar Labib, the director of the Ministry of Health's tobacco department, adding that the increase in cigarette taxes was likely to elicit a stronger reaction because the tobacco used in the water pipes is still quite cheap.

At one of Cairo's many corner shops selling cigarettes, owner Hani Ishaq said on just the first day the tax had already had an effect. "I've noticed a drop in people buying cigarettes today," he said. "I smoke, and with this 40 per cent increase, I would probably buy half the cigarettes I would normally." "I hope this does not effect the shop too much," he added.

Click on image.. July 2, 2010 - Sales of licit cigarettes in Ireland have fallen by 40 percent in the 12 months since the imposition of a ban on in-store tobacco displays, according to the claims of retailers. Smoking is not thought to have diminished, but more demand is now being met by the illicit (illegal) trade.

If the 40 percent figure is correct and if this drop in licit sales has been caused by the display ban, Ireland can be said to have experienced a most extraordinary shift in its tobacco trade.

Barry Gilsenan, of Retailers Against Smuggling, said the year-old ban had normalised criminal trade in contraband tobacco, which now accounted for a quarter of all cigarette sales in the country. Gilsenan - "This was inevitable I hate to say,” he said. “When cigarettes are kept out of sight, it is very easy to trade illegaltobacco."

Health campaigners from the Irish Cancer Society and ASH Ireland disputed the figures and rejected suggestions an ad ban was to blame for increased smuggling.

According to recent figures from the Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (VWA), a government body, some 41 percent of Dutch bars and discos transgress [violate] the law.

"If I prevent people smoking in my bar, it would mean bankruptcy for sure," Gerhard Sannes, owner of De Kachel (The Stove) bar in Groningen in the north east of the country told AFP. "I tried it in the beginning, but my sales fell by 75 percent" in a two-month period, he said. Fined 1,200 euros (1,461 dollars) in February last year, Sannes said he would remain defiant.

"It is mostly small bars with no staff (apart from the owner) that do not respect the law," Wiel Maessen, secretary of the Save the Small Cafe Owners anti-ban group, told AFP. "They don't have the space or the money to install separate smoking areas."

Two different courts ruled last year that the ban, seeking to protect staff against passive smoking, unfairly discriminated against one-man operations that employed none. (Netherlands - spot checks on smoking in small cafes suspended temporarily..)Those rulings were annulled, and the appeals court in the eastern city of Arnhem upheld the ban's general applicability earlier this month. Bar owners are seeking to challenge that judgement in the Supreme Court. "It is hard for small bars," concedes Inge Freriksen, a spokeswoman for the Dutch health ministry, adding that a new government may review the law given the recent court defeats. The centre-right liberal VVD, which won parliamentary elections on June 9, wants bars with no staff to determine their own smoking policies, a party official told AFP.

July 1, 2010 - State lawmakers on Wednesday, June 30th were on the verge of passing legislation that would make it illegal for occupants of a car to smoke if there are children on board younger than 14. The law would carry a maximum fine of $100 fine for those who are caught, said Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, a Democrat from Queens, who sponsored the bill.

Children are far more susceptible to childhood diseases like asthma when exposed to secondhand smoke, and unlike adults they do not have the choice to avoid it, Ms. Stavisky said. “A child gets in the car where mommy or daddy or Aunt Nancy are smoking and doesn’t have the option of leaving,” she said.

The law was approved by the Assembly this week and was expected to be passed by the Senate later Wednesday.

The law is intended to make parents aware that secondhand smoke can be harmful to their children and help them understand the risks, said Assemblywoman Nettie Mayersohn, a Democrat from Flushing, Queens, who sponsored the Assembly bill.Originally, the bill created penalties of possible jail time and up to a $500 fine, Ms. Mayersohn said. But lawmakers chose to make it an “educational bill more than a punitive bill,” she said. “We just want to give the kids a voice.”

New York would join a handful of states with similar laws. Arkansas, Louisian, Maine and, most recently,California have adopted similar bills, said Russell Sciandra, a tobacco policy specialist with the American Cancer Society.Considering the risk of secondhand smoke to children, it is an appropriate use of governmental power, he said.

The law would be enforced much like a traffic violation, with a police officer having the authority to cite someone for having a lighted tobacco product in a car with a child. The fine would be handled by a jurisdiction’s health department, Ms. Stavisky said.

July 1, 2010 -On Friday, June 25th the beach at Zushi, Kanagawa Prefecture, opened its bathing with a basic smoking ban in place. The prefectural ordinance bans smoking on beaches except for special smoking areas but carries no penalty.

The roughly 600-meter-long (0.37 miles) sand beach has five roofed smoking areas and operators of seasonal seaside houses will patrol voluntarily to ask smokers to use them, one of them said.

A similar ordinance is in place in Shirahama, Wakayama Prefecture, but Kanagawa was the first prefecture to enact such a rule in May. (Shirahama is a resort town on the south coast of Wakayama Prefecture.)

Gov. Shigefumi Matsuzawa attending a beach opening ceremony. "We'd like to create clean and safe beaches that all the people — both smokers and nonsmokers — can enjoy," the governor said. "Since Kanagawa beaches have many visitors from outside the prefecture, we need to fully enforce the new rule."

Yoshimasa Makabe, who heads a guild of beach house operators on the beach, said he hopes families will enjoy the beach more with the separate smoking areas.

Background: Kanagawa Prefecture on Friday, March 19th became the first of Japan's 47 prefectures to adopt a local ordinance banning smoking on swimming beaches outside of designated areas. At the municipal level, the hot-spa resort cities of Atami in Shizuoka Prefecture and Shirahama in Wakayama Prefecture have already adopted similar ordinances banning smoking on swimming beaches. (Japan, Kanagawa Prefecture to ban smoking on beaches...

July 1, 2010 - Imperial Tobacco is taking legal action to overturn plans to stop the open display of cigarettes and cigars in shops and to ban cigarette vending machines in Scotland. (Scotland to ban cigarette displays and outlaw cigarette vending machines..) The company claims that the Scottish parliament, which approved the measures earlier this year, does not have the legislative competence to prohibit tobacco displays and cigarette vending machines. The legal challenge, which will be heard next week in the Scottish civil courts, the court of session, is the latest attempt by the industry to prevent sweeping new controls of the sale of tobacco coming into force across the UK.

Background: Imperial Tobacco, Japan Tobacco International (JTI) and British American Tobacco (BAT) said on Monday, April 26th they are to seek a judicial review of the relevant sections of the Health Act 2009, in which the UK government is looking to impose the display ban to discourage smoking.

The Health Act 2009 requires cigarettes, cigars, pipe and roll-your own tobacco products to be hidden from view in England, Wales and Northern Ireland from October 2011 in large retailers and from October 2013 in smaller outlets. Scotland is pushing its own banning legislation through its own parliament.

The ban on open displays of tobacco products will come into force in Scotland for larger retailers next year and small shops in 2013, while the ban on cigarette vending machines, usually found in pubs, restaurants and hotels, begins in 2011.Imperial Tobacco claims the new measures are an attempt to regulate the sale and supply of goods to consumers, a matter reserved to the Westminster parliament. The bans also affect the freedom of trade provisions between Scotland and England under the 1707 Act of Union, again something which Holyrood (Scottish parliament) is prevented by law from doing. Imperial said retailers would be required to comply with the new legislation at "significant cost and on pain of criminal penalty", while tobacco firms faced having their freedom to compete affected significantly.

The Scottish government said it would "rigorously defend" the legislation. "It is within the context of protecting future generations from the devastating effects of smoking that the measures set out in our act should be viewed."

* Hawaii, New Mexico, South Carolina and Utah's excise tax increases go into effect July 1, 2010. Also, New York, a $1.60 increase will take the tax there to $4.35 a pack, the highest in the country. South Carolina will add 50¢ for a new tax of 57¢ per pack, meaning that it will no longer have the lowest tax in the country, a distinction that will pass to Missouri, which imposes 17¢ a pack. In Hawaii, taxes will be increased by 40¢ to $3 per pack; in New Mexico a 75¢ rise will take the tax there to $1.66 per pack; and Utah will add $1 to take its tax to $1.70 per pack.

June 30, 2010 - Starting Thursday, July 1st a new state law is to ban smoking in all restaurants, bars and workplaces — except certain private clubs and state-run casinos. With only hours before Kansas is scheduled to go smoke-free in public places, owners of bars, bingo parlors and private clubs are seeking to block the ban in court. A Shawnee County District Court Judge said he would rule by 5 p.m. today, June 30th on a request for a temporary injunction against the statewide smoking prohibition. The business owners hope to delay the ban while they challenge the landmark law. (Judge will rule on request for temporary injunction against Kansas smoking ban by DAVID KLEPPERThe Star’s Topeka correspondent, KansasCity.com, 6/29/2010)

The District Court judge this afternoon, June 30th granted an injunction that will block implementation of the smoking ban - but ONLY for 28 private clubs. Lawyers for private clubs, bars, bingo parlors, and a pool hall had asked Judge Franklin Theis to delay implementation of the law while they challenge its constitutionality.Theis opted to delay only a provision that outlawed smoking in the 28 private clubs that received licenses after January 1, 2009. For all other bars, restaurants and workplaces, the ban goes into effect at midnight.

June 30, 2010 - Can the City of Buffalo protect their youngsters by having the toughest tobacco control program in the entire nation?? We thought the program in San Francisco or Boston (and suburbs) were good but the program being discussed in Buffalo would be even better.

A hearing was held on Tuesday, June 29th sponsored by the Buffalo Common Council's Legislation Committee regarding ways to prevent youngsters from beginning to use tobacco. (The City of Buffalo Common Council is the legislative branch of the city government.)

Anti-smoking advocates want the Council to pass one of the nation's toughest laws involving tobacco sales. But some retailers insist a new city law would create an unneeded layer of restrictions that should be left to federal regulators.

Under the plan sponsored by Masten representative Demone A. Smith, some new businesses would be barred from selling tobacco products, including pharmacies, restaurants, establishments that primarily serve minors, or businesses that are within 1,000 feet of schools. Beginning in 2014, tobacco products could not be sold at any drugstores, bars, restaurants, game rooms or on school or college properties.

The law would force tobacco companies to pay a user fee for every brand or sub-brand of cigarette they distribute in Buffalo. The revenue … which could approach $300,000 a year … would be used to hire new inspectors to enforce the new laws.

Among the dozens of provisions in the bill are tougher regulations on tobacco advertising. They would include a ban on large outdoor tobacco product ads at stores near schools and a new rule that would not permit the amount of space for tobacco ads to exceed the square footage of ads for all other products.

Some bill supporters believe the proliferation of advertising is one reason many youngsters begin to smoke. Stores are at the "front line" for the tobacco industry, said pastor James Giles, executive director of Back to Basics Outreach Ministries. He said many stores are selling cigarettes to minors, "addicting them for life." "I have young people stealing from their parents to buy cigarettes," said Giles. He said he runs a substance abuse program where some people can kick a crack habit, but can't quit smoking.Other speakers noted that there are nearly 400 businesses in Buffalo that sell tobacco products, adding that many of them display a couple dozen tobacco ads.

Among those speaking against the new regulations at today's hearing was Michael Newman, co-owner of Noco Energy Corp. who is chairman of the New York Association of Convenience Stores. The association has argued that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is already working on new regulations to govern tobacco retailing. Dan Shanahan, chief financial officer of Wilson Farms neighborhood convenience stores said he's not a "devil," but is a "responsible tobacco retailer." He said no one wants minors to smoke, but he added that cigarettes are acceptable commercial products for adults.

Hillary Clarke, the American Cancer Society's local director of advocacy, argued that reducing the number of tobacco retail outlets over time will lead to reduced sales of products that cause nearly nine out of 10 lung cancer deaths.

June 30, 2010 - Lorillard Tobacco Company today launched a new website, "Understanding Menthol," that focuses on the scientific evidence surrounding the public health impact of menthol in cigarettes. The new website is located at www.understandingmenthol.com.

Legislation signed into law last year authorized the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to regulate cigarettes and other tobacco products. One provision of the law mandated the creation of a new Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee, which will submit a report and recommendation on the use of menthol in cigarettes to the FDA.

"In analyzing menthol in cigarettes, the FDA and its advisory committee have the responsibility of assessing sound, legitimate and objective scientific data," said William R. True, Ph.D., senior vice president of research and development for Lorillard Tobacco Company, who hosts the site. "This website describes the clear and compelling scientific evidence regarding menthol, one of the most widely studied ingredients in cigarettes.

"The scientific evidence does not show that menthol in cigarettes is harmful and Lorillard believes Americans have a right to make a personal choice to use any legal product," Dr. True said. "Menthol neither causes people to smoke, nor deters them from quitting. A menthol cigarette is just another cigarette – and should be treated no differently. The best available scientific evidence demonstrates that menthol cigarettes have the same health effects as nonmenthol cigarettes."

Anti-tobacco advocates are bracing for a counterattack from tobacco firms after Ontario and the federal government moved Tuesday, June 29th to ban kiddy-friendly flavoured cigarillos. “Our work on this front is far from over. Some tobacco companies seem to be intent on manoeuvring around our health protection laws,” Ontario Health Promotion Minister Margarett Best warned in London, Ontario where she announced the ban.

The ban takes effect July 1 and prohibits the sale and distribution of flavoured cigarillos, with the exception of menthol flavour. The province also is requiring unflavoured cigarillos to be sold in packages of at least 20, the same as cigarettes, in an effort to make the little cigars unaffordable for young people.

Packaged like crayons and candy, the little cigars come in chocolate, grape, strawberry, cherry, bubblegum, pina colada and other flavours. Some retail for less than $2. Best said the products were clearly aimed at youth and children.By changing the wrapping from paper to a tobacco product, the industry was able to have the flavoured cigarillos classified as a cigar, avoiding the packaging and warning requirements of cigarettes. Best said the Ontario law allows the government to change the definition of cigarillos if the tobacco industry changes the product to sidestep the legislation.

“My staff and I at the Ministry of Health Promotion are working diligently to ensure our efforts to protect young people are not thwarted by actions taken by tobacco companies to circumvent federal and provincial laws,” she said.

Middlesex-London medical officer of health Graham Pollett said the flavoured cigarillos appeal to young people who might think they are less dangerous than cigarettes. That is not the case, he said, warning the next tobacco product that will likely be launched in Ontario is snus.

An Imperial Tobacco spokesperson said his company supports the Ontario law’s intent. “We believe kids should not be smoking at all, this is for adults that make a choice knowing the risks,” Eric Gagnon said. But the ban will only add to the problem of contraband cigarettes, he said.

June 30, 2010 - British American Tobacco (BAT) Korea said Monday, June 28th that it will invest 100 billion won ($83.2 million) into its factory situated in the southern city of Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, South Gyeongsang Province. BAT Korea will upgrade the factory with the latest high-tech machinery from 2010 to 2011.BAT Korea funneled 130 billion won to build the Sacheon factory in 2002 and invested further to expand its capacity and facilitate a large warehouse complex.

BAT Korea, carves out about 18 percent of the market as of this April, 2010.

In addition, the outfit famous for such brands as Dunhill and Kent will also invest in training its 300 employees in the factory so that they can operate the advanced technology. BAT Korea President Stephan Liechti said the large-sized investment is geared toward ensuring quality to Korean customers on the back of the international giant's technological edge.Liechti: "Korea is a very important market in the BAT Group, and we are committed to ensuring that our factory continues to produce only the highest quality cigarettes for our Korean consumers. We are leveraging BAT's global expertise to bring cutting-edge technology to our Korean business so we can continue to deliver high quality and innovative products to our customers."

Surveys by YouGov, commissioned by the anti-smoking organisation Ash, suggest the ban is increasingly popular with the public as a whole. More than three out of four people want it to be extended into other areas of public life, a statistic that is likely to be seized upon by health campaigners.

Around 80% of people in England now back the ban in workplaces, including pubs and restaurants, compared with just over 70% when it was implemented three years ago this week (a ban was introduced in Scotland in 2006). Among the general population, 73% support a ban in children's play areas while 77% want a ban in cars carrying children, according to exclusive findings of the survey shared with the Observer.

Smoke-free legislation was enforce across the UK by July 2007 (England - July 1, 2007, Scotland - March 26, 2006, Wales - April 2, 2007, Northern Ireland - April 30, 2007).The findings are based on five separate surveys carried out by YouGov. The first was conducted in April 2007, almost three months before the legislation came into force, and the last was carried out in March 2010. The polling suggests some of the greatest changes have taken place in the attitudes of smokers.

Dame [used formerly as a courtesy title for a woman in authority] Helena Shovelton, chief executive of the British Lung Foundation, said the findings showed the government had to act. "Smoking just one cigarette, even with the car window open, creates a greater concentration of secondhand smoke than a whole evening's smoking in a pub or a bar," Shovelton said. "A ban on smoking in the car with children would prevent some of the 22,000 new cases each year of asthma, caused as a direct result of passive smoking. This overwhelming evidence of public support can no longer be ignored, and as the only UK charity supporting everyone affected by lung disease we are calling for this legislation." An early day motion in parliament demanding a ban on smoking in cars where children are present has been signed by 40 MPs.

Click on image to enlarge..June 29, 2010 - While European Union statistics show that people in Bulgaria are among the lowest-paid in the EU – though salary levels are rising the sharpest in the bloc – prices of food, soft drinks, cigarettes and liquor in Bulgaria are among the lowest in the EU.

These data come from a report issued by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. The results refer to the survey on food, beverage and tobacco prices carried out in 2009 in the 37 participating countries. This survey covered a total of about 500 comparable products.

In 2009, the price level of a comparable basket of food and non-alcoholic beverages was more than twice as high in the most expensive EU27member state than in the cheapest one, Eurostat said.

For tobacco, the price levels were almost five times higher in the most expensive EU member state than in the cheapest. The highest price levels were observed in Ireland (217 per cent of the EU27 average), United Kingdom (166 per cent), France (133 per cent) and Sweden (130 per cent), and the lowest in Bulgaria (46 per cent), Romania (47 per cent), Lithuania and Hungary (both 51 per cent).Denmark was nearly 40 per cent above the EU27 average and had the highest price level for food and non-alcoholic beverages in the EU27 in 2009. Ireland, Finland, Luxembourg, Austria, Belgium, Germany and France were between 10 per cent and 30 per cent above the EU27 average. Italy, Cyprus, Sweden and Greece were up to 10 per cent above the average, while the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, Slovenia, Malta and Portugal were up to 10 per cent below.

Latvia, Slovakia, Estonia, Hungary, the CzechRepublic and Lithuania had price levels for food and non-alcoholic beverages which were between 10 per cent and 30 per cent below the EU27 average, while Bulgaria, Romania and Poland were between 30 per cent and 40 per cent below.

Data are also available for more detailed breakdowns of food products. For bread and cereals, price levels ranged from 52 per cent of the EU27 average in Bulgaria and 58 per cent in Poland to 146 per cent in Denmark and 132 per cent in Ireland; for meat from 56 per cent in Poland and 58 per cent in Romania to 131 per cent in Denmark and 128 per cent in Austria; and for milk, cheese and eggs from 63 per cent in Poland and 77 per cent in Lithuania to 137 per cent in Ireland and Cyprus.

The price levels for alcoholic beverages ranged from one to two and a half. The highest price levels for alcoholic beverages were registered in Finland (170 per cent of the EU27 average), Ireland (167 per cent), Sweden (138 per cent) and Denmark (135 per cent), and the lowest in Romania (70 per cent), Bulgaria (77 per cent), Spain and Hungary (both 84 per cent).

June 29, 2010 - Ireland has the highest tobacco prices in the European Union (EU) – it costs more than twice the average.

These data come from a report issued by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. The results refer to the survey on food, beverage and tobacco prices carried out in 2009 in the 37 participating countries. This survey covered a total of about 500 comparable products.

Ireland has the highest prices for food and non-alcoholic drinks in the European Union and this despite more than 15 months of deflation. Prices in Ireland are on average nearly 30 per cent higher than the EU average. Only Denmark has higher prices – things cost almost 40 percent more than the EU average there. To put these numbers into perspective, prices in the UK are a measly 3 per cent above the EU average.Some of the top line numbers are really shocking. Along with Cyprus, Ireland has the highest prices in the EU for dairy produce and it costs 37 per cent more here than the EU average. Think about all the cows in this country and all the milk and cheese that is locally produced yet still prices are nearly 40 per cent higher than the EU average.

June 29, 2009 - In order to best serve the needs of the international tobacco industry and its suppliers, DMG Worldmedia (London, UK), organisers of the "World Tobacco" events and publishers of "World Tobacco" magazine, and Konradin Selection (Mainz, Germany), publishers of Tobacco Journal International", are excited to announce a new partnership giving focussed, cohesive access to the world's tobacco markets and a truly integrated platform for the international tobacco community.

From June 2009 "World Tobacco" magazine will no longer be published separately, but will be part of "Tobacco Journal International" (TJI), the world’s premier publication for the industry. "Tobacco Journal International" will become the exclusive publishing partner for the TJI/World Tobacco coalition and will participate in, and support all "World Tobacco" events including forthcoming exhibitions in Asia, the Middle East and India.

All "World Tobacco" publications will, in future, be produced by Konradin Selection as part of the TJI magazine and other publications in TJI’s portfolio. TJI will publish all catalogues and special issues for "World Tobacco" events.

The DOH and CSC joined forces in the battle against the ill effects of tobacco consumption as they issued a joint circular to “protect the bureaucracy against tobacco industry interference”.

Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral and CSC Chief Francisco Duque, a former DOH secretary himself, both signed the landmark order aimed at preventing undue influence of the tobacco industry on the government’s tobacco control policies.Joint Memorandum Circular 2010-01 now only allows transactions where a public official or employee has the duty to regulate, supervise and control the operations of the industry.

Last April, Cabral warned government agencies from receiving donations from the tobacco industry because it undermines the country’s commitment to the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, specifically the general obligation to protect public health policies from vested commercial interests. (Philippines - DOH warns government agencies to avoid partnerships or accepting donations from tobacco manufacturers..)“We hope that with the issuance of this memorandum circular, we will be able to further control the meddling of the tobacco industry in the way we act or decide, as well as show that the government is sincere in its efforts to be transparent and accountable in all its dealings,” Cabral said.

Ms. Cabral said the memorandum supplements a CSC memorandum issued last year that prohibited smoking inside government offices and within 10 meters from the entrance of the agencies. "CSC will impose penalties for violators [of the memorandum]," she added.

June 29, 2010 - Scotland's west coast has become a smuggling hot spot after police cover for ports was significantly reduced last year.

New figures obtained by The Scotsman (Scotland's national newspaper) from the tobacco industryhave revealed there was a massive increase of illegal (illicit) cigarettes coming in through Dumfries and Galloway.

Sources within the tobacco industry and police believe former paramilitary groups from Northern Ireland are increasingly using ports like Stranraer to smuggle in counterfeit of "cheap white" cigarettes – made abroad below British standards – on to the UK mainland. (Cheap cigs account for fifth of market, The Scotsman, 4/28/2010)Recent checks on packets by the tobacco industry revealed 30.8 percent in Scotland were illegal products, up 10.5 percentage points from 2009. The worst area on the UK mainland was the north of England, where 42.8 percent were illegal, up 23.5. The rate dropped dramatically the further south the tests were carried out, to just 2 percent in the south-east.

The problem of smuggling is costing the exchequer (the government's chief financial minister) millions of pounds in lost revenue and means potentially dangerous products are circulating in the UK. It also undermines the strategy of increasing tobacco prices to discourage use.

Police in Dumfries and Galloway have seen their numbers drop from 48 to 38 in the last year because Scottish Government funding was switched to providing more cover at airports following recommendations in a report by the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (Acpos). The police officers have to cover 108 small ports, and Stranraer and Cairnryan on a coastline stretch of 350 miles.

But a Scottish Government spokeswoman said: "The Scottish Government is continuing to invest record levels in policing at ports across Scotland, including Dumfries and Galloway. The Scottish Government provides additional funding to police for aspects of ports policing. Dumfries and Galloway benefits directly from this funding, as it has from the funding for additional officers."